Saturday, September 26, 2009

The owners of Scenic Route Paper Co. haveannounced they are closing their companyand the official announcement was made ontheir blog and through press releases. Readabout it here.

I'm so sad to see their wonderful designs goand, if you are as sad as I am, you should knowthat they have an online store on their websitewith discount prices and shipping deals on allof those luscious papers and accents! Gocheck it out before it is all gone!

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

If you do and you have a photo that you are just stumpedon a color scheme for check out the cool new tool justreleased on Scrapbook.com!!

It is calledScrap By Color and it is a free program thatallows you to upload your own picture and choose yourbackground color and possible sketches from the paletteit creates based on the colors in your photo.

I uploaded this picture of the twins and it chose about24 different colors that were in the photo and thenI was able to click on the sketches buttons and seesketch ideas using different color schemes from thepalette.This was very easy to use and I was able to play with thecolors I chose as a background paper and run throughthe sketches multiple times with different colors as thebasis for my layout. Of course, this was with only onephoto and the sketches were kind of simple but theydid provide a nice 'jump-off' point for my scrapbookwork. Now, I don't really have an excuse for droppingeverything and scrapping the photo. Hmm...

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Our dwarf Meyer Lemon tree has had fruit on it since we planted it earlierin the year and the lemons have finally started to turn yellow. I can't findthe photo I took of them the other day but the photo above is from backin June (I think). Needless to say, all of the tiny lemons that were on thetree were blown off during our 2 weeks of 60+ mile/hour wind gusts andall that were left were the bigger fruit.

Fortunately, those have started to ripen and when we couldn't decide whatto have for dinner tonight I was able to send Daddy out to pick a lemon tomake Hollandaise for 'quick' eggs benedict.

We used this recipe for the Hollandaise...

1/2 cup Butter

3 large egg yolks

1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon of lemon juice

1/8 teaspoon salt

dash cayenne pepper

2 Tablespoons hot water

finely chopped parsley, if desired (we skipped this)

Heat butter in a heavy saucepan until hot and foamy but not browned.In a small bowl, whisk or beat egg yolks, lemon juice, salt and cayennepepper. Gradually beat in butter, then water. (I goofed and added thewater first but it wasn't a problem.) Return the mixture to saucepanand beat over very low heat until mixture is slightly thickened. Serveimmediately or let stand over warm water for up to 30 minutes. If desired, sprinkle with chopped parsley before serving. (Like I said, weskipped the whole parsley thing.)Makes about 2/3 cup of (easy, luscious) Hollandaise sauce.(Recipe by Diana Rattray, About.com w/my comments)

Okay, while Daddy was stirring the sauce, I browned the canadianbacon, toasted the english muffins and poached the eggs. Once thesauce was done, there was no waiting! None of that 'keep warm overhot water' stuff for this hungry pair! (Nope- the twins would have noneof it! Big Surprise! Ha.)

Everything smelled so good and really came together fast -muffins on theplates, bacon on top, poached eggs on top of bacon, and pour spoonfulsof Hollandaise over each poached egg. So rich, so delicious, so pretty I hadto take a picture! LOL!It's a good thing I took the photo before heading to the table becausethis is one impromptu fancy dinner that didn't last long! There wasenough Hollandaise in the recipe to generously cover 4 poached eggs.That was just perfect because we only had 2 english muffins and 4pieces of canadian bacon to start with!

This was just super yummy and I just had to share...enjoy!xoxoxCsmoferret

Monday, September 14, 2009

I have received instructions for preserving a Spider's Weba couple of times this week (most recently from theNordic Needle Newsletter) and they all reference the same website...The West Virginia Division of Natural Resources Kids Krafts website.(Click on the link to go and see it for yourself. I live in Texas but I'mpretty impressed with the West Virginia DNR website.)

Since it will be Halloween before too long (where is this year going?)I thought I would pass it on...

These are their instructions they give for preserving a real spider's web(with a few modifications by me):

Things you need to get started:

sheet of black card stock or construction paper

can of hair spray or spray adhesive

can of white, silver or gold spray paint or talcum powder

can of spray varnish or fixatif

cardboard box large enough for the paper to fit in

First find a few spider webs in a meadow or bushes or in between tree branches. This should be relatively easy since spiders usually build a new one every day. The following procedure can be a bit tricky and will need a bit of practice so it’s good to find several webs. First, make sure the web is not being used by its builder. You can gently tap the web and check to see if the occupant is home or look around the edges for the spider.

Gently spray the web with gold, silver or white spray paint. Hold the box behind the web to protect and collect any spray not hitting the web. Make sure the spray does not damage the web but only covers it with paint.

Another method not using paint, is to gently sprinkle the web with talcum powder by pouring some powder on your palm and blowing it onto the web.

Place the black paper in the box and spray it with hair spray or spray adhesive. You’ll have to act quickly since the spray dries quickly. The most difficult part is next and will usually require a bit of practice so don't be disappointed if your first tries wind up a bit twisted and distorted. Practice makes perfect.

Place the sprayed tacky piece of paper behind the web and gently bring it into contact with the web evenly. Try toget all of the web touching the paper at the same time so the web isn't pulled out of shape or folded on to itself.

Carefully cut the strands of the web supporting it from its surrounding vegetation.

Finally, to preserve the web, spray the paper with the attached web with a protective coat of varnish. Make sure all spraying is done in the cardboard box to protect the adjacent area.

Now display your lovely web where ever you choose.

Make sure you check out their website for the other cool ideas they have posted!!

Saturday, September 12, 2009

I just can't believe I've been a member of the Blogosphere for over a year!While I was looking for the photos for yesterday's post I discovered I hadstarted my blog on August 31, 2008. That means I missed my ownBlog-aversary!!

So, I will be putting together some Blog Candy to celebratemy Belated 1 year Anniversary and 2000 visitors. Since I have onlyhad about 1700 visitors in a year, it may take a while butI've got some cool stuff to give away.

Friday, September 11, 2009

It is so hard to believe my children are going to celebratetheir 9th birthday in 11 days. That means that it has been8 years since our Country was attacked.

Where has the time gone? Where has all of the Good Will amongstAmericans gone? What have we allowed to happen to ourCountry? So many questions that need answers andyet, the most important thing is - We must NEVER FORGETwhat happened that day and the fact that it could happenagain if we let our guard down. I don't mean to sound paranoid(because I am not) but I do mean to sound prepared (becauseI am) and wary. I have not looked at daily life the same sinceseeing those planes hit the World Trade Center Towers thatday. I am more grateful for what I have and for what ourCountry means and stands for and I think that is importantto pass on to my children.

The thing is, this change will forever be linked in my mindto the twins' first birthday. I couldn't believe we had broughtchildren into a relatively safe and sane world only to haveeverything change before they were even a year old. So muchchanged that day- our innocence, if you will, was stolen. Itwasn't all about us anymore. The universe didn't revolvearound our house or our jobs or our feelings anymore.That hasn't changed back in our house, but I know thereare those out there who have 'put it all behind them' and'moved on' and no longer see what all the fuss is about.

Hopefully, that isn't the prevalent feeling. I believe itbrought my family closer to our God, it brought ourrelatives closer together, it brought ourneighbors closer together, it brought our communitiescloser together and, it brought our Nation, as a whole,closer together.

Well, I know this has been long but today is ourDay of Remembrance. I hope it is as meaningful toyou as it is to me.

May God Bless America and Protect the menand women who put their lives on theline for us everyday!

Thursday, September 10, 2009

This Labor Day the Twins learned how to wake board and water skion the Aransas River thanks to a family friend allowing Daddy andGrandpa to borrow his boat.

Here are some cool pictures of the day...Buddy on the Wake Board

Punkin on the Wake Board

Daddy Water Skiing

Daddy looking back from the bow of the boat to get a picture of everyone...and watching...

Punkin Water Ski!! This was her first time ever and she got up and skiiedover and over! The kids had such a great time that everyone is hopingto go again next weekend. Since it has been raining all week here, thatprobably won't happen but I know they won't soon forget their firstLabor Day Water Ski trip!

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

the first thing I would purchase would be a large version of this.There is absolutely no way we could afford even the small sizebut if I'm going to dream I'm going to dream big!

I think Amy Butler has outdone herself with her new line ofdesigner hand-tufted wool rugs and I enjoyed looking throughthe gallery of styles but, unfortunately, I'll never get to see oneon my living room floor unless we win the lottery. At least I canenjoy 'window shopping'!

About Me

I am a Mommy to b/g twins, married to my Soulmate, part-time assistant to a CPA, a part-time Book-keeper for a local shop, and I dabble in scrapbooking, cardmaking, painting, jewelry making, sculpture, needle arts and just about any other craft you can think of. I love to create and usually give my art away to friends and family. I just enjoy the process!